Between the goldenrod and grasses, the wetland is absolutely alive with color this week. Monet would be impressed. I noticed it yesterday while doing some deer fence repairs and snapped a few pictures for the email (these are included). My phone camera can never quite capture the vibrance and detail correctly, so as you drive by this Friday, take a peek at the wetland. That being said, we finally have a functioning gate! From how I remember it, Chris mentioned seeing some deer tracks on the farm yesterday so we needed to get it done. I’m honestly surprised said deer managed to find their way back out of the farm.
In early spring this year, I arrived at the farm on some Monday morning to a small herd of deer that had found their way through the gate left open over the weekend. Overestimating their intelligence, I thought I might be able to corral the deer back to the entrance where they might recall how they got in and make their way elsewhere. So, with the likeness of a sheepdog lacking in speed but not in gusto, drawing on my deepest primal instincts, I chased the group of four in an unsuccessful and inefficient attempt to get them to leave. After a half hour, I was able to corral one through the open gate and the rest each managed to brute force their way through gaps in the corners. Deer are not the brightest. And perhaps neither am I.
Although the fence work isn’t completely finished, with the gate being back up, I would be surprised to have another deer incident of the like. Before this newsletter goes on with its regular housekeeping items, I would like to share that Kennedy, our student intern of three years, had her last day working for the Student Farm this past Friday. While I’ll miss her company and quiet wit, it’s exciting to see her move on to the next thing. Congrats, and good luck to Kennedy!
Spotlight
Horticulture Crops Weed Science Lab members pose in front of a portion of their pumpkin harvest at the Southwest Purdue Agriculture Center, Vincennes, IN on September 23, 2025. Picture from left to right are Jeanine Arana, Celia Corado, Nicolle Salamanca, Helen Nocito, and Stephen Meyers.
The Meyers lab has been invaluable to the farm and we really appreciate all the work and effort they put in that helps us do what we are able to at the Student Farm:
Did you know? – Some of the produce you’ve enjoyed this season was included in weed management research trials. The Horticulture Crops Weed Science lab, led by Dr. Stephen Meyers, is part of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture. They conduct farmer-inspired research on weed biology, weed-crop interactions, and integrated weed management. Weed management is important because weeds can compete with crops for light, water, and nutrients resulting in yield and quality losses. Heavy infestations of weeds can also interfere with harvest and contribute to insect and disease pest problems. Our research trials at the Purdue Student Farm in 2025 were in potatoes and onions.
Potato research efforts were led by undergraduate student Dylan Whitlow. Dylan explored the use of reusable silage tarps for managing weeds between potato planting and potato sprout emergence. Silage tarps are opaque, starving emerged weeds by blocking them from receiving sunlight. The results from this study suggest that this method of early season weed control can be highly effective and represents a safe alternative to repeated soil cultivation and/or herbicides on small farms.
The onion research was the subject of Master of Science graduate student Celia Corado’s thesis. It utilized repurposed, clear, high tunnel plastic applied to prepared onion rows five weeks before onions were planted. The clear plastic encouraged weeds to emerge which were then subjected to various treatments including silage tarps and flame-weeding. The result was mostly weed-free conditions at onion planting time and throughout the growing season. Compared to traditional bare ground bed preparation, clear plastic followed by silage tarping resulted in a more than a 70% reduction in emerged weeds and hand-weeding time as well as larger onions. These results are so beautiful, they bring a tear to our eyes…. or maybe that’s just the onions.
This year our research lab had pumpkin trials at three different Purdue Agriculture Centers located in Wanatah, Lafayette, and Vincennes. The pumpkins you’ve received in your CSA share are from research plots at the Meigs Horticulture Research Farm in Lafayette. In this study, Master of Science graduate student Helen Nocito explored three different methods of terminating a cereal rye cover crop prior to planting pumpkins- mowing, roller-crimping, and herbicide. Many pumpkin growers plant cereal rye in the fall and terminate it the following spring- but their termination methods vary. The terminated cover crop can provide weed suppression, help retain soil moisture mid-to-late in the season, improve field access compared to tilled fields, and keeps pumpkin fruits cleaner by creating a barrier between the fruit and the soil. In this study, we found that mowed rye provided the least weed control, and roller-crimping provided the most.
Our goal is to address real world farmer weed management problems while training the next generation of scientists and farmers. We can achieve both of these missions through our collaboration with the Purdue Student Farm. Boiler up and hammer down weeds!